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2014 Nissan Rogue: Here Comes Trouble

Having the oldest model in a hot vehicle segment like small crossover SUVs isn’t fun for any automaker. Still, Nissan MotorNissan Motor has managed to hold its own quite nicely with the six-year-old Rogue, which ranks a solid #5 in the segment, behind newly refreshed versions of the Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, Chevrolet Equinox and Toyota Rav4.

Being last to the party has its advantages, though: With the redesigned 2014 Rogue, unveiled today, Nissan has an opportunity to leapfrog those guys and stir up trouble in the market (for a few years, anyway, until the competition goes back to the drawing board again).

That appears to be Nissan’s strategy with its boldly styled — and boldly priced — new Rogue. Nissan undercut the competition with a starting price of $22,490 on the base Rogue S, well below entry-level models from other makers, which range from $23,600 to $25,900. That’s not a stripped down model, either. Standard interior features include power windows, a five-inch color display screen, air conditioning, rear-view monitor, 4-speaker AM/FM/CD audio system with auxiliary jack, power door locks, LED maplights, USB port, Bluetooth audio and hands-free text messaging assistant. With available premium features and packages, the Rogue tops out just shy of $33,000.

Nissan is going for blood right out of the gate with a special $239-per-month lease offer for those who reserve a $23,840 Rogue S with all-wheel-drive now. The Rogue officially goes on sale in November.

Such aggressive marketing is nothing new for Nissan, which slashed prices on most of its models earlier this year and has seen a resulting uptick in sales. In the case of the Rogue, however, Nissan can afford such value because it managed to save 30 percent on the vehicle’s development costs by collaborating with its global partner, RenaultRenault.

The Rogue (along with the European version, called the Nissan X-TRAIL) is the first vehicle to use a new jointly developed common module family (CMF) architecture. Nissan’s vice president for product planning, Pierre Loing, described it as a set of Lego blocks for vehicle development. Instead of designing different “top hats” for one basic chassis as is common today, Nissan and Renault engineers can “plug and play” multiple components to develop a wide range of vehicles in all shapes and sizes. Eventually, said Loing, the companies expect to sell 2.3 million Nissan and Renault vehicles based on that modular architecture in 190 countries around the world.

John Hoffecker, who leads the automotive practice at consultancy AlixPartners, calls these flexible vehicle structures “mega-platforms” and says they could dramatically change the economics of the auto industry. “Well-executed mega-platforms will have the potential to allow manufacturers to field more brands and models, in more geographic regions and to do so cost effectively,” Hoffecker wrote recently in Forbes.

There is one engine-transmission combination across the model line — a 2.5-liter, 4-cylinder coupled with Nissan’s continuously variable transmission, generating 170 horsepower and 175 lb-ft of torque, which Nissan says is best in the segment. While the Rogue hasn’t yet completed EPA testing, the carmaker says front-wheel-drive versions are expected to get 33 mpg on the highway, 18 percent better than the outgoing model. Currently, the Chevy Equinox has the best mileage among the segment leaders, with 32 mpg highway.

The Rogue is Nissan’s second best-seller in the U.S. (behind the Altima mid-size sedan). It has sold 113,000 Rogues so far this year, up 16 percent in a segment that’s up 15 percent. It’s only going to get more competitive from here.

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